AI & machine learning among Gartner's 10 tech trends to watch in 2017

Advanced machine learning, artificial intelligence and data science will be among the top new technologies shaping business trends through 2017 and beyond, according to analyst firm Gartner Inc. The research firm presented its Top Ten Strategic Technology Trends for 2017 at the Gartner Symposium/Itxpo in Orlando, Fl., this week. It said it expects to see "intelligence everywhere" permeate through the enterprise IT landscape in the next three to five years, in the shape of new software-based systems that are programmed to learn and adapt. David Cearley, Gartner vice president and fellow, said these intelligent trends will intertwine to create a "digital mesh" that blurs the boundary between digital and physical workspaces. Gartner predicts AI will become "the next battleground through 2020", and we've already seen the battle lines being drawn with companies like Google, Microsoft and IBM all advancing their own machine learning algorithms via the open-source community, while Salesforce.com Inc. recently introduced its own Einstein platform to underpin its services.